LONDON -- If you're going to leave a hut full of food unattended while you go off to film in the snowy mountains of Svalbard, you'd better be damn sure there aren't any peckish polar bears in the vicinity.
The BBC filming crew for David Attenborough-narrated nature documentary series The Hunt definitely learned this lesson the hard way. After returning to their camp they discovered the wooden doors of their hut ripped off at the hinges, empty food packets scattered all across the floor, and the slightly dazed culprit lying in a semi-comatose state on a nearby hillside.
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First they had to scare off the hungry beast with a few flares.
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Then it was time to take stock of the mess.
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"He's had bacon, lots of bacon," said Field Assistant Håvard Festø, staring into the bottom of an empty cooler. "Mincemeat; steak (nice, marinated steak); sour cream; yoghurts; blueberries; the chicken, of course... he ate everything."
Later, Assistant Producer Sophie Lanfear went into the hut to try and clean up the mess.
"A bear breaking in is worse than teenagers at a house party," she said. "The difference between a polar bear and a house party is that he left all the alcohol... but everything else... Marmite! He didn't eat the Marmite!"
Eight hours later, the thief was back for round two.
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He finally left the hut alone after a further three visits (presumably when they'd run out of bacon).
You can watch the full video of the break in here.
So there you have it. If you ever happen to find yourself setting up camp in polar bear territory, best to ditch the meat and go heavy on the Marmite instead.